mandy Review

A trippy revenge thriller that could've done with some tightening.

By Kenneth Seward Jr.

Panos Cosmatos’ Mandy is a cult classic in the making. Imbued with surreal imagery and riveting performances from the cast, this thriller envelops the viewer in a cosmic nightmare, properly positioning them to endure a terrifying scenario in a fresh way.

Taking place amid a forested area around California’s Shadow Mountains, Mandy’s protagonists were afforded a simple life; Red Miller (Nicolas Cage) worked at a saw mill while his girlfriend, Mandy Bloom (Andrea Riseborough), was a cashier at a small convenience store. They took things slow. Some light reading in the afternoon, dinner and a movie at night. They seemed content, despite the unnerving atmosphere that loomed over the mountain side. Nothing bad had happened. Yet, it was apparent that something wasn’t quite right. Especially with Mandy. Her awkward conversations and eerie glances perpetuated this feeling. The tension continued to mount, only offering a brief reprieve after Mandy encounters an unsavory group while walking to her store.

The heart of Mandy’s story centers on revenge – a wronged character is seeking some form of violent retribution. This premise is elevated by Cosmatos’ wild imagination and the way he preps the audience for the latter parts of the film by introducing them to a supposed normal person. A seemingly inconspicuous couple living in solitude? There’s something strange about them but nothing that would warrant immediate concern. Cosmatos builds on that uneasiness. Subtly at first, with unconventional shots and clever lighting. It isn’t long before he ramps things up though. Entire scenes are blanketed in one color or another, signifying major shifts in tone. A line of dialogue is “enhanced” by an otherworldly voice to emphasize a passage of literature. The landscape changes. Going from a forest with roads that lead to civilization to a wasteland straight out of Mad Max.

The leap from odd to downright insane is brilliant; Red and Mandy’s plight is depicted in a manner that entangles the audience, forcing them to accompany these characters on their descent into madness. Because of this, it can be difficult to tell what’s really going on. A character holding a dagger that intermediately emits a green light could have been a hallucination based on the scenes before it. It’s possible that the dagger was indeed a magical instrument. It’s also possible that this effect was inserted for the audience, seeing as how the characters onscreen didn’t seem to notice the strange light when the weapon emerged. Whatever the case, the scene accomplished its goal in twisting an already disturbing event.

Mandy is full of strong performances. Andrea Riseborough is mesmerizing as the film’s title character. She is great when on screen, but in the second half she is only used as a means to an end, a reason to get revenge. Her character is wasted in that regard; I would have liked to have seen her character grow or change like Red does. Linus Roache is creepily adept at playing cult leader Jeremiah Sand. The same can be said for Olwen Fouéré and Ned Dennehy, each tapping into a special bit of crazy for their respective roles as cultists Mother Marlene and Brother Swan.

Nicolas Cage is remarkable as Red. He doesn’t spout any profound dialogue or is given much room to really develop his character. That said, his ability to convey a broken individual that slowly succumbs to rage is praiseworthy.

As a horror-thriller, Mandy works. This is most likely because Cosmatos is in complete control of his vision. Unfortunately, that’s probably the same reason the film faulters a bit. This is evident in Mandy’s pacing. There are dull, bloated moments throughout that tarnish an otherwise awesome film. Some of the early scenes are methodical in nature, overstaying their welcome. These long, drawn out portions don’t contribute that much to the plot and take up viable screen time. Worse still were the segments that felt out of place entirely, a set of “deleted scenes” that only managed to be distractions.

The Verdict

Mandy is a refreshing, unbridled riff on the familiar horror story of a wronged person who exacts revenge on the bad guys in horrible fashion. That said, it does struggle in parts. While giving director Panos Cosmatos the freedom to create without limits was advantageous in delivering his vision, it also proved harmful for the finished product. Proper editing would have gone a long way to make Mandy even better.